Wednesday, March 11
New York, N.Y.
8:30 P.M. CT
DePaul University
16-16,3-15Big East
71
vs
67
Xavier
19-13,8-10Big East
1
2
F
DePaul
38
33
71
Xavier
34
33
67
Blue Demons Advance to Quarterfinals
3/11/2020 11:44:00 PM | MEN'S BASKETBALL
DePaul knocks off Xavier in first round of BIG EAST Tournament
NEW YORK – In a day of uncertainty surrounding the BIG EAST Tournament, the Blue Demons were certain to advance as they defeated Xavier, 71-67, in the first round. DePaul advances to the quarterfinals to face second-seeded Villanova on Thursday night.
Xavier (19-13) took an early six-point lead before a 9-2 run gave the Blue Demons an 18-17 advantage following a lay-in for Paul Reed with 10:22 left in the first half.
A jumper by Oscar Lopez Jr. knotted the score at 22-22 and ignited 10 straight points for the Blue Demons. Overall, Lopez's bucket was the beginning of a 15-2 run with Charlie Moore's driving lay-up giving DePaul its largest lead of the first half at 35-24 with just under five minutes until halftime.
The Musketeers answered with seven straight points before the teams traded three-pointers and the score was at 38-34 in favor of DePaul at the break.
A dunk by Reed gave the Blue Demons a seven-point advantage, but Xavier had one more run and flipped the score into a six-point lead at 59-53 following a basket by Tyrique Jones with 9:18 on the clock.
DePaul (16-16) closed the game by outscoring Xavier, 18-8, over the final nine minutes that included free throws by Moore and Reed to seal the game. The duo went 5-for-6 at the line in the final 29 seconds for the 71-67 final score.
Reed finished with 23 points and 12 rebounds while Moore totaled 18 points and nine assists. Jaylen Butz added 11 points and six boards.
Jones led Xavier with 22 points and Zach Freemantle added 18 points.
The Blue Demons play the second-seeded Wildcats on Thursday in the quarterfinals. The game can be seen on FS1 and heard on WIND (560 AM).
Xavier (19-13) took an early six-point lead before a 9-2 run gave the Blue Demons an 18-17 advantage following a lay-in for Paul Reed with 10:22 left in the first half.
A jumper by Oscar Lopez Jr. knotted the score at 22-22 and ignited 10 straight points for the Blue Demons. Overall, Lopez's bucket was the beginning of a 15-2 run with Charlie Moore's driving lay-up giving DePaul its largest lead of the first half at 35-24 with just under five minutes until halftime.
The Musketeers answered with seven straight points before the teams traded three-pointers and the score was at 38-34 in favor of DePaul at the break.
A dunk by Reed gave the Blue Demons a seven-point advantage, but Xavier had one more run and flipped the score into a six-point lead at 59-53 following a basket by Tyrique Jones with 9:18 on the clock.
DePaul (16-16) closed the game by outscoring Xavier, 18-8, over the final nine minutes that included free throws by Moore and Reed to seal the game. The duo went 5-for-6 at the line in the final 29 seconds for the 71-67 final score.
Reed finished with 23 points and 12 rebounds while Moore totaled 18 points and nine assists. Jaylen Butz added 11 points and six boards.
Jones led Xavier with 22 points and Zach Freemantle added 18 points.
The Blue Demons play the second-seeded Wildcats on Thursday in the quarterfinals. The game can be seen on FS1 and heard on WIND (560 AM).
Team Stats
DePaul
XU
FG%
.455
.450
3FG%
.333
.176
FT%
.833
.714
RB
35
32
TO
14
11
STL
6
10
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
18
FGM
6
3FGM
4
FTM
2
Pts
11
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Pts
6
FGM
2
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
F
/ MEN'S BASKETBALL
G
/ MEN'S BASKETBALLG
/ MEN'S BASKETBALLDeWayne Peevy and Chris Holtmann Media Availability - 7/22
Thursday, July 31
Media Availability: DeWayne Peevy and Chris Holtmann
Tuesday, July 22
Episode 22: NJ Benson, Men's Basketball
Thursday, June 05
College Basketball Crown Postgame Press Conference
Tuesday, April 01